Due to a lack of material and a stress-filled two months, this blog will be temporarily on hold.
This gives me some time to come up with some better material and concentrate on a better presentation of my observations and/or recommendations (whats up baby!)
I graduate soon. Once that happens, expect this blog to become ridiculous.
Till then…
Shoes are probably my favorite article of clothing. I can strangely find myself looking at shoes for hours without even realizing what I am doing. In accordance, I am very particular about what I like.
That being said, Converse’s “Jack Purcells” are arguably my favorite shoe I own. First introduced to me by OneManArmy when I was high school, these shoes have been a steady staple of my wardrobe since I was 16.
Like many of my favorite articles of clothing, Purcell’s are great because of their versatility. One can wear them with anything – jeans, chinos, trousers.
A couple things to consider, though, when wearing the Purcell. First, it is a definite must to break these shoes in. Not because of comfort issues, but because you look like a total dweeb if you dont.. Fortunately, they are pretty easy to break in – getchu a nice vintage look. Secondly, particularly on the classic pair, I replace the white laces for black ones. This an ol’ trick I also learned from OneManArmy. It gives the shoes a little more edge which I prefer.
I also personally wear Purcell’s with Pants cropped as high as is reasonable. Because of this, I almost always make sure I am either wearing some wild socks or simply no sock at all.
Be careful about the colors when considering Purcells. Many of my friends have white. I think white is a to bland. There is also Navy, but I feel it limits the shoe to summer time with bright colors only. Also, John Varvatos has taken the Purcell line and put a few modern touches to it (allowing him to charge twice as much I might add). They are cool, but not as tight as they originals.
Getchu a pair of Purcells.
P.S. Make sure everyone knows they are Purcells and not those wack Chuck Taylors.
Over Xmas, a friend and I discussed their latest plans to run a marathon. It was not a pleasant conversation for her. Yesterday, that friend called me to talk of her marathon. It again was not a pleasant conversation.
To be honest, I think marathons are one the worst events that occur within the fitness community. It would be the worst, but some people have gone above and beyond and starting running “ultra-marathons”" – 50 or even 100 mile runs. These are simply absurd.
Marathons are difficult and I applaud anyone who has the discipline and will-power to take on tough tasks like a marthon. However, under no circumstances will I ever value someone’s attempt to run a marathon as a “great thing” because, while most are entirely unaware, marathons are extremely detrimental to one’s health – even just one. Hell, the race itself can put one in considerable danger.
My real issue with Marathons, though, is that they are entirely a product of the combination of conventional fitness wisdom and pop culture. Conventional Wisdom states one should conduct chronic cardio. Ultimately, the greatest test of the chronic cardio runner is the marathon which is then, of course, inflated by pop culture. My friend lives in California where long-distance, endurance-type racing – marathons, triathlons, etc… – permeate all aspects of the fitness community… unfortunately (However, Mark Sisson is hopefully starting a revolution in SoCal). I can’t think of a worse community that embraces such a damaging activity more than California – well, maybe one.
My hating of marathons is not anecdotal or bias - not by a long shot. Art Devany, arguably the smartest man out there concerning living primally, puts it best:
“With my apologies to David Letterman, here are the top ten reasons not to run marathons.
10. Marathon running damages the liver and gall bladder and alters biochemical markers adversely. HDL is lowered, LDL is increased, Red blood cell counts and white blood cell counts fall. The liver is damaged and gall bladder function is decreased. Testosterone decreases.
9. Marathon running causes acute and severe muscle damage. Repetitive injury causes infiltration of collagen (connective tissue) into muscle fibers.
8. Marathon running induces kidney dysfunction (renal abnormalities).
7. Marathon running causes acute microthrombosis in the vascular system.
6. Marathon running elevates markers of cancer. S100beta is one of these markers. Tumor necrosis factor, TNF-alpha, is another.
5. Marathon running damages your brain. The damage resembles acute brain trauma. Marathon runners have elevated S100beta, a marker of brain damage and blood brain barrier dysfunction. There is S100beta again, a marker of cancer and of brain damage.
4. Marathons damage your heart. From Whyte, et al Med Sci Sports Ecerc, 2001 May, 33 (5) 850-1, “Echocardiographic studies report cardiac dysfunction following ultra-endurance exercise in trained individuals. Ironman and half-Ironman competition resulted in reversible abnormalities in resting left ventricular diastolic and systolic function. Results suggest that myocardial damage may be, in part, responsible for cardiac dysfunction, although the mechanisms responsible for this cardiac damage remain to be fully elucidated.”
3. Endurance athletes have more spine degeneration.
2. At least four participants of the Boston Marathon have died of brain cancer in the past 10 years. Purely anecdotal, but consistent with the elevated S100beta counts and TKN-alpha measures. Perhaps also connected to the microthrombi of the endothelium found in marathoners.
1. The first marathon runner, Phidippides, collapsed and died at the finish of his race.
In addition to Devany’s top ten, I wanted to point out a few more things that happened to my friend. She told me yesterday that she had been sick for around 3 weeks and could not simply get over it; random throat infections, painful headaches, and extreme fatigue were plaguing her. She goes to the Doctor to also find that she was extremely anemic and low in hemoglobin. The Doctor tells her that these are all direct products of her training up for her marathon. Running distances of 10-20 miles regularly can do that..
This, of course, all makes sense to someone who understands how we have evolved. Running like that directly suppresses one’s immune system which explains why she was sick for 3 weeks “unexplainably.”
Ultimately, my friend called to tell me she had torn her meniscus, another direct result of consistent long-distance running.
She was very upset because she is now not able to complete something she trained so hard for and for that I am very sorry. But I told her yesterday that hopefully this will be a sign as to change her lifestyle, at least considering her health. She is pretty stubborn though…
I will never run marathon and, if I have a say, neither will the people I care about.
Living at The Institution can make living your desirable life – whatever that may be – difficult at times. Honestly, I am frustrated more often than not. So, when trying to living a paleo lifestyle, The Institution can really make things difficult.
Besides trying to avoid the “mandatory” meals where processed carbs and mass quantities of deserts are shoved down your throat “family style,” another issue that arises is snacking. Part of the poor food culture here at the The Institution is the “company stores” (company stores allow cadets to satisfy their hunger when the Mess hall is closed or simply out of convenience). In these “stores,” there is nothing but food that is a direct detriment to ones health. At the store, one can only choose between products made by Nestle, Hostess, or Hershey.
I do my best to avid these products at all times because, aside from being simply bad for you, they quell your appetite away from the food you should actually be eating – fruit, vegetables, red meat. So, I wanted to point out a few snacks that are great alternatives to ”fatty cakes.” (these are my favorite and by no means the entire spectrum of what could eat. For a bigger list, go to the Mark Sisson’s site.)
Keep in mind that snacking is really for the weak (myself included). You should almost always strive to maintain a “feast/famine” diet with acute starvation (intermittent fasting) as an integral part of your life. Easier said than done I know, but results are best achieved when intermittent fasting is substantial in one’s lifestyle
Like many aspects of life, I am at odds with much of the conventional wisdom that resonates throughout. Of course, its worse because I am in the military. Occasionally though, I will find an another person who feels much like me and my most recent is Daniel Pink.
I stumbled upon his first book “A Whole New Mind” last summer and I loved it – I literally read it in one day. I was in the middle of Field Training and I gave it to my buddies out there and they felt the same way. I highly, highly recommend it for anyone, particularly my friends who are about to enter the “Workforce.” (http://www.amazon.com/Whole-New-Mind-Right-Brainers-Future/dp/1594481717/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1266794420&sr=8-1)
This post, however, is about his second book that I just finished – DRiVE
All have heard the classic cliché resembling something like “well, you know, incentives are the key to everything.” What Pink finds is that is, in fact, not true (not necessarily at least).
Pink argues that the motivational structure throughout organizations today is lacking , something he calls ”Motivation 2.0.” Under 2.0, if something is wanted/needed the people in charge simply try to incentive the person in order to get the desired results. Initially it may boost performance, but ultimately it leads to a lack of creativity and burn-out. What Pink argues is that if you really want people to become motivated, you have to give them three things: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. He calls this/these “Motivation 3.0.”
Of course this is at complete odds with conventional business wisdom which relies almost entirely on “carrot and sticks.” Yet, Pink does state that some companies are beginning to understand 3.0 and the benefits that can be accrued. For example, a small software company sets aside 20% of the work week for the employees to work on whatever they choose. What happened was that the things created/worked on during this 20% generated more earnings than the traditional work the other 80% of the time. Best Buy in their corporate sector is now working in a “Results only working enviroment” whereby each employee decides their own hours.
Interesting stuff…
Pink is definitely a trendy author, and, yes, he does use a MacBook, but his message is clear and powerful. Every organization should make this book mandatory.
http://www.amazon.com/Drive-Surprising-Truth-About-Motivates/dp/1594488843/ref=pd_sim_b_1
watch the video as well
I havent posted UFC picks the last couple times out of sheer laziness. Plus, I haven’t been involved as much as I should be with the sport because I have had difficulty training lately. However, UFC 110 in its first ever showing in Australia has got some great fights that pose some interesting questions and a definite great card.
Nogueira v Valasquez
This is one of Dana’s best matchups in a while. Nogueira is coming off arguably his most impressive showing of his illustrious career by dominating the great Randy Couture – incredible fight by the way. Nogueira looked fresh, his stand-up very sharp, and as always his ground game is virtually unstoppable. He has beaten everybody (except Fedor) and is without a doubt one of the toughest pound-for-pound fighters in the community. Now, Valasquez is simply an animal. He has some of the most impressive victories I have ever seen, particularly his smashing of Jake O’Brien who was supposed to be a real badass and (I think) beat Valasquez. It looked like Roy Jones fighting an amateur. In addition, Valasquez is becoming very technically sound. Not only is he a great wrestler (multiple time all-american wrestler), his stand-up is becoming very, very good. I feel it has already surpassed Nogueira.
Both fighters are incredible good, but if I had to pick I am taking Nogeuira and this is why: he has fought better wrestlers (Olympian Dan Henderson, Olympian Randy Couture) and beaten them soundly. His jiu-jitsu is so good that it takes years of training to get to a point of neutralization, not just a couple months. His hands arent as explosive as Valasquez, but they are good enough to force Valasquez to consider other options besides making it a Muay Thai match. Valasquez doesn’t get tired, but I wouldnt be surprised with a late-round submission of Nogueira over Valasquez. You can only fight off a BJJ guy like for so long before you get caught.
Silva v Bisping
Both fighters prefer to stand, but their approach is very different. I really have trouble understanding how Silva has been so successful because his style seems to consist only of power, toughness, and bar room brawling. He is just a good enough athlete to be successful I guess. Bisping seems to represent the UK trend in that he prefers to stand and is fairly technical. We will see what happens, but I am guessing it will either be a Silva knockout or a Bisping decision. honestly couldn’t call this one though…
Jardine v Bader
Ryan Bader is a nasty wrestler who is extremely explosive. I have actually been pretty impressed with his BJJ as well. His stand-up is not proven, but Jardine’s is. Jardine may knock him out, or even gain a decision, but if Bader takes him down, which I think he will, Jardine is in for a long night.
Other fights are not really worth commenting – either I don’t know enough or they are boring . Let me know what you think.
Spring is steadily approaching. Clothing lines are now beginning to release some of the spring season gear and I wanted to point out a type of shirt that I think not only will be largely popular, but is also very cool – Madras.
Like all style, Madras was once hugely popular in the ’60s. It is having a seasonal resurgence this year. It was breifly displayed last year, but this year I have been noticing that it is becoming a larger segment of many label’s selections.
The above picture is one taken from Ralph Lauren’s “Rugby” selection. They always add a bit of funk to their stuff, sometimes enhancing it, most of the time ruining it. But often times I can find some real good stuff there. This pearl-snap madras shirt is a great example. Additionally, anything from Rugby is going to be cut very trim so it will actually fit pretty will.
J.Crew has recently put out a few madras shirts that offer a little more of a utility look. (The picture wont load) http://www.jcrew.com/AST/Browse/MensBrowse/Men_Shop_By_Category/shirts/madrasshirts/PRDOVR~22796/22796.jsp
These shirts arn’t terrible expensive and are timeless. They are like flannel for the spring/summer.
In addition, for the girls – Madras looks great casual sun-dresses.
Caveat: Dont not wear this madras
this is worse
I spent a crazy weekend in Boston with Strike Force Alpha visiting IvyMurph. It was a blast. The last day we were there happened to be Valentine’s day and the common theme amongst many were the topics surrounding V-day – namely relationships.
I consider myself rather relationship savvy. I have experienced the entire gamut of the relationship spectrum – heartbreak, apathy, jealousy, love, disgust. All the emotions…
That being said, V-day got me reflecting on two very important aspects of relationships that I feel most fail to entirely comprehend.
The first is the idea that proper interest in one another is the only necessity to protect oneself against infidelity and/or heartbreak. To put it another way, if someone really wants to be with you, nothing and/or no one is going to alter this feeling. Often times people stress themselves over their significant others desire(s). Questions arise – Are they interested in someone else? Are they cheating on me?? Why are they texting this other person? Etc…
Sure, It is understandable why people do this, but what I am trying to point out is that there is, in fact, no need to be jealous; your significant other will clearly indicate their particular feelings. They may display total interest flying across the country to be with you, or they may be tepid to where just getting them alone is a pain in the ass. Whatever the case, expect actions by them that are in accordance with their feelings.
Either way, chill… relationships will work if they are supposed to and you should let it be an organic process – no forcing
The second idea deals with the “breakup.” Everyone has been broken up with (or simply rejected) and it sucks – no doubt about it. But all need to understand that they are getting rejected or dumped for a reason. That being the case, do not be the person who tries to beg and plead for them to stay with you. I write this not because I am opponent of people who are obsessively in love and think their desire is ridiculous, but rather because a relationship where one wants out and the other doesn’t simply does not work. A relationship has to be approached and appreciated equally by both partners, or it simply will not work. Take the heartbreak, apply some logic to love, embrace your newly found single life, and save some of your dignity.
Hate to be bleak surrounding a supposed “sweet” holiday, but hopefully I am providing some value and insight into a no doubt complicated topic.
I haven’t posted a style post in a while and for that I apologize. However, no better way to get back into it then to discuss arguably my favorite piece of clothing, the cardigan sweater.
For some reason, people tend to associate the cardigan with senior citizens. This is entirely wrong. The cardigan is one of the most versatile articles of clothing one can ever own and should be a prominent article in one’s wardrobe.
Traditionally, you have two types of cardigans, the classic and the shawl collar
classic
shawl
The only real difference clearly lies in the collar of the sweater, but that can make a large difference in the overall look. I often find myself wearing a shawl cardigan as my outermost piece of clothing, while I wear the classic under a jacket.
As mentioned, the cardigan is the best because it is so versatile. You wear it with just about anything – a button down, a T-shirt, over jeans, over trousers, underneath a suit/blazer. You can also wear it really baggy or form-fitting. I tend to go back and forth. Also, If you live in a cooler climate, you can wear it with shorts in the summer as I know I will be doing in Colorado for the next couple of years. Look at this cat wearing it with a T-shirt extra “grandpa-style”
baggy
If you didn’t get it from the examples listed above, the cardigan is also great because the same piece of clothing can be both casual and formal. Ralph Lauren display’s them under suits while J.Crew sports them with T-shirts.
Either way, I am all about buying great clothes that offer tons of utility. The cardigan is right up there with jeans in its utility. Go buy a couple – one dark, one light.
I had to share this video with my readers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRdOOAq36oU&feature=player_embedded
This video is definitely one of the funniest, spot-on videos I have seen in a while. While I am not in Wall Street, I do know that this attitude is definitely prevailing among the community. It captures the scene I think as well as “My New Haircut.”
I cut this video from a site called www.BroBible.com from my man Woody. It is a great site with lots of entertaining articles. You should definitely check it out.
